Markus and Indrani are some of the hottest photographers to shoot the celebrity world since David LaChapelle first trained his lens on Madonna. They even had their own reality show: Bravo’s “Double Exposure,” which documented the drama (real or not) behind the scenes as they created their bold, sometimes dreamy images.

It typically takes two or three weeks — and up to $500,000 — to set up their elaborate shots. “I actually push the shutter, but that’s the least of it,” Markus says. “It’s really about a vision.”

The diverse duo — he was born Markus Klinko in Switzerland and trained as a harpist; she’s a native of India, a former model with an anthropology degree from Princeton — started working together in 1995 and have since shot a galaxy of singers, models and stars. Their photo book, “Icons,” comes out next month, with a Nov. 7 launch at Lincoln Center. Here’s the story behind some of the book’s best shots.

BEYONCÉ

Markus: Her mother brought this diamond top, but it looked too formal with dresses or skirts. I told her to wear it with jeans. She said, “I’d love to. I don’t have any.” I went upstairs and brought her my Helmut Lang jeans. They’re size 32 and fit her great. My joke is, I have Beyoncé’s butt!

Indrani: Beyoncé looks terrific in anything. She has this laid-back sexiness. I don’t think she needs to try hard to be fabulous.

Markus: The next time we had a photo shoot, she brought the jeans back — washed, with a sweet note attached.

LADY GAGA

Markus: In 2009, Hello Kitty contacted our agent about shooting an image for their 35th anniversary campaign. They wanted to do a symbolic image but I thought it was very boring and had the spontaneous idea: Why don’t we do this with Lady Gaga? We found this Masonic temple in London and shot it there. We thought it would be really cool to have that golden star behind her head, a mix of the occult and the pop star: the high priestess of pop.

Indrani: We’d never met Gaga before and we were nervous. Most celebrities want to come across pretty; Gaga [wants] to create something exciting. She loved our ideas and wanted to go further. I was going to give her big eyes in post-production but she said, “Why don’t we do it in reality?” So we painted those big eyes onto her eyelids. Our stylist, GK Reid, brought the crystal dress from a London designer; it probably weighed 200 pounds. She’s such a trouper!

LINDSAY LOHAN

Markus: She was 11 1/2 hours late for a shoot for her clothing line, but for this swimsuit shoot for a men’s magazine, she was relatively on time. Lindsay’s one of the most photogenic actors out there. She moves very fast — but she always looks amazing doing it.

Indrani: Getting her on set, well, there are complications, but once she’s there, she gives 100 percent.

KATIE HOLMES

Markus: This was a big cover story for a celebrity/fashion magazine, and she was still in the post- “Dawson’s Creek,” pre-Tom Cruise mode. She was rather shy, almost virginal. She wasn’t that young, maybe 25 or 26, but she came across almost as a teen. She’s not one of those celebrities who want to be provocative by showing as much cleavage as possible or yanking up her skirt: She holds back. Our job was to bring some of the seductive elements out of her without showing a lot of skin. We met her again about a year ago, and she had matured into an equally lovely, sweet person, but she definitely had a different aura. You could feel the Hollywood status — she was a poised, elegant, A-list star.

Indrani: On that first shoot, our goal was getting her comfortable; she was very sweet and innocent and quiet . . . Now she has this very strong energy and seems very focused.